<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//SoftQuad//DTD HoTMetaL PRO 4.0::19971010::extensions to HTML 4.0//EN" "hmpro4.dtd">
 
<HTML>
 
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Children in China</TITLE>
</HEAD>

<BODY>
<H2 ALIGN="CENTER">Children in China </H2>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1">Text &amp; Photos by Michael Karhausen 1997 -
Orbis Books; Maryknoll, New York 10545-0308</FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1"><B>Review by Heather McDonald</B></FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1">The author is a German photographer/journalist
who was commissioned by an Asian Catholic news agency to spend two years in
China to learn about the country and its people. The result was this book,
which focuses on children in China. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1">Accompanied by ninety black and white
photographs, the text is divided into eight chapters: &quot;An Ancient Land of
Youth&quot;; &quot;Society's Child&quot;; &quot;The Precious Child&quot;;
&quot;Games, Poems and Stories&quot;; &quot;Food for Thought&quot;;
&quot;Peijun, A Village Boy&quot;; &quot;Small Child, Big City&quot;; and an
&quot;Epilogue&quot;, which leaves us with the message that if we can meet all
the world's people as we meet the world's children, we will have gone far to
breaking down the barriers that divide our world. This brings us full circle to
the introduction of the book, which refers to the Talmud's teaching that every
child is born with a message to deliver to the human race. This book is the
best book I have seen about modern China which can also be appreciated by young
children. The text is sophisticated, delving into detail about the history,
sociology and customs of China which affect the lives of its children. Thus it
makes for informative and educational reading for adults. The pictures, on the
other hand, need little explanation and can be enjoyed by even very young
children who will be interested in seeing what types of games and music
children in China enjoy, what their family life is like, and the differences
between rural and city living.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1">Of particular interest to FCC parents: I found
the one-child government policy to be objectively explained in reasonably
sensitive terms. Examples from the book: &quot;According to tradition, only
sons can continue the family line, and only sons can properly honor a family's
dead ancestors. Patriarchy permeates everything in traditional Chinese
society.&quot;; &quot;The Chinese government calls the new one-child-per-family
system the &quot;four-two-one family :four grandparents, two parents, one
child,&quot;; &quot;What are the penalties for having a second child? Parents
may pay fines and lose government privileges, or else have property confiscated
in lieu of payment.&quot; </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1">This book would make an excellent gift for
children eight years and older. It would also be a very good family resource
book for any FCC family, whatever the age of their children.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-1">For information on where to purchase this book,
contact David Miller of Orbis Books, at PO Box 308, Mary knoll, New York,
10545-0308. His email address is:
&quot;mailto:dmiller@maryknoll.org&quot;dmiller@maryknoll.org</FONT></P>
<CENTER>
<TABLE WIDTH="75%">
<TR>
<TD WIDTH="120" ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-2"><B><A HREF="../../index.htm" TARGET="_top">FCC BC 
Home</A></B></FONT></TD>
<TD ALIGN="CENTER"><A HREF="../../../../index.htm" TARGET="_top" ONMOUSEMOVE='window.status="FCC BC Home"'><IMG SRC="../../Images/home_logo.gif" ALT="FCC BC Home" BORDER="0" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="30" ALIGN="ABSMIDDLE"></A>
</TD>
<TD WIDTH="121" ALIGN="RIGHT"><FONT SIZE="-2" FACE="Arial"><B><a HREF="mailto:fcc_bc@yahoo.ca">Feedback</a></B></FONT></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD WIDTH="120" ALIGN="LEFT">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT SIZE="-2"><B><FONT FACE="Arial">Copyright &copy; FCC
BC  </FONT></B></FONT></TD>
<TD WIDTH="121" ALIGN="RIGHT">&nbsp;</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
<BR>
<FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="-2"><B> Last Updated: April 25th, 1999 </B></FONT> 
</CENTER>
</BODY>
</HTML>

